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Amazon Fake Reviews Reach Holiday Season Levels During Pandemic

  • Fakespot says about 42% of the reviews it assessed were bogus
  • Rise in fake comments coincided with shoppers rushing online
FRANCE-INTERNET-GAFA

Photographer: Denis Charlet/AFP via Getty Images

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Fake reviews on Amazon.com Inc. during the pandemic have reached levels typically seen during the holiday shopping season.

About 42% of 720 million Amazon reviews assessed by the monitoring service Fakespot Inc. from March through September were unreliable, up from about 36% for the same period last year. The rise in fake reviews corresponded with the stampede online of millions of virus-avoiding shoppers.